Esko launches motorized roll feeder at FESPA 2019 – Munich

Esko has announced the launch of a motorized roll feeder for its Kongsberg C64 digital cutting table, developed to deliver accurate and efficient cutting of soft signage materials. Eliminating inaccurate cuts on soft signage jobs due to wrinkles, stretch distortion or imperfectly rewound rolls, the new motorized roll feeder incorporates an active material feed.

The new roll feeder avoids stretch by actively feeding the material to the cutting table, rather than pulling it. A dancer bar provides the correct tension with adjustable weights and an active edge correction allows for a steady straight feed, even if the roll is imperfectly rewound after printing. A spreader roll is also incorporated as a final checkpoint to smooth out any remaining wrinkles for precise finishing of soft signage jobs.

The combination of the motorized roll feeder and built-in Esko Kongsberg software cleverly compensates for any distortion during cutting. A software algorithm determines the exact cut size, taking into account material properties for shrink, stretch or melting during the print stage or, alternatively, the operator can decide to follow what was printed.

Retrofit available for Kongsberg range

Russell Weller, Esko Product Manager, said, “This is the only solution in the soft signage industry that ensures accurate cutting results on tensile materials; from the very first cut through to the end of the roll. Perfect feed enables our customers to deliver defect-free products, avoid waste and rework and boost their efficiency. The motorized roll feeder is available as a retrofit solution for our Kongsberg range and, when used in combination with the take-up unit, provides the only true roll-to-roll production on the market today.”

The motorized roll feeder handles large rolls to enable wide format converters to keep up with their digital printing capacity. High volumes of large jobs, long print runs and dense materials like PVC require a solution that easily handles heavy rolls. The new feeder facilitates rolls up to 300 kg/666 lbs with a maximum outer diameter of 470 mm/18.5 inches for producing large jobs even when they extend beyond the work area of the cutting table.

Typically, when jobs are larger than the table, a shift in the cutting edge creates a joint where the job is interrupted and then resumed. This step is now eliminated with the new motorized roll feeder when used in combination with a conveyor belt and Esko software to manage the job. To see the latest Kongsberg cutting table range and motorized roll feeder in action, visit stand A5-G10 at FESPA 2019 or alternatively visit https://www.esko.com/motorized-roll-feeder.